This Article is From Jun 16, 2013

Ajay Maken, CP Joshi quit ahead of cabinet reshuffle tomorrow

Ajay Maken, CP Joshi quit ahead of cabinet reshuffle tomorrow
New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee has accepted the resignations of Ajay Maken and CP Joshi ahead of tomorrow's cabinet reshuffle. Four ministers with cabinet rank and four ministers of state are likely to be inducted in the Union Council of Ministers.

Sources in the Congress say that in addition to changes in the cabinet, the party is also prepping for organisational changes.

Mr Maken, 49, resigned as as Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation on Saturday night. Mr Maken has been Minister of State for Home Affairs and Sports Minister. He was inducted in the Cabinet in October.

CP Joshi, 62, was Minister for Road Transport and Highways and had assumed additional charge of the Railways last month.

The reshuffle in the Council of Ministers is expected to be the last for this government. The national election is due by May.    

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to fill vacancies in the cabinet. PK Bansal and Ashwani Kumar resigned last month.

Mr Bansal quit as Railways Minister after a corruption scandal. Mr Kumar resigned as Law Minister after allegations that he tried to protect the government by altering a report the CBI was to submit to the Supreme Court about its investigation into how valuable coal fields were assigned too cheaply to private firms.

Other vacancies were created with two key members of the ruling coalition, the DMK and Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress, pulling out. Their ministers in the cabinet have yet to be replaced.

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